Bears 31, Cowboys 24

Cowboys vs Bears: Good, bad and ugly

Jason Garrett
Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images

In a must win game, the Cowboys did the unthinkable. They lost to a team with a quarterback who may not even be a starter next year. The game on paper didn't look bad, for the Cowboys only lost by seven points. But the game was dominated by the Bears after the Cowboys scored their opening touchdown. This was very similar to their game against Buffalo last Thursday. The Cowboys started hot then faded into obscurity as the game progressed.

The Good

- Ezekiel Elliott was once again the best player on the Cowboys offense. Sure Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup were able to each acquire 6 catches for 83 yards and 109 yards respectively, but most of their receptions came in garbage time when the Bears where playing a prevent defense, Elliot on the other hand was doing his best to carry the Cowboys offensively. He gained 81 yards on 19 carries and scored two touchdowns. However, his efforts weren't enough, for the Cowboys offense looked stagnant when Elliott wasn't being fed the ball.

- Just like last week, the Cowboys offense did not get off to a slow start. On their opening drive, the boys looked like they had game planed properly for the Bears' defense, and Dak Prescott was able to march down the field with ease. This lead to a touchdown run by Elliott and gave the Cowboys a quick 7-0 lead. After this drive though it's as if Prescott and the Cowboys couldn't get first downs or convert simple offensive plays. The defense was able to pitch a shutout until garbage time in the 4th quarter.

- The Cowboys' defense was not great either giving up 31 points to the Bears. However, the one Cowboy who could not be blamed on defense was Jaylon Smith. He was second on the team with 8 tackles and had two miraculous stops in the end zone to prevent the bears from scoring a touchdown twice. He has become the leader of the Cowboys defense and plays his heart out every game. He has stepped up the most since Leighton Vander Esh's injury, and Jerry Jones is starting to look like a smart man for giving Smith his extension.

The bad

- Do not let Prescott's numbers fool you. Most of his completions came in the 4th quarter with the Bears playing prevent defense. Prescott looked great in the opening drive, but afterwards looked as though he couldn't quarterback to save his life. Just like last week when the Cowboys played the Bills, Prescott and the Cowboys looked atrocious after their initial score. Prescott went 1-9 after their first touchdown and did not look good until the 4th quarter. Troy Aikman said it best when he exclaimed that Prescott's numbers were "fake stats." His numbers suggest he had a good not great game, but to those who watched the game know Prescott had a Blake Bortles like game in which he didn't accumulate good QB numbers until garbage time. This is three subpar games in a row for Prescott, and if he is not careful, he can kiss that long-term extension good bye.

- Brett Maher wasn't terrible like he was last week, but he wasn't good either. He missed one field goal on Thursday from over 40 yards for the 6th time this season. He is now 1-7 on field goal attempts from 40 yards or more. He has now missed 10 field goals this season total, more than any kicker in the last four years according to FOX Sports. His job security now comes into question, and it's easy to see the Cowboys replace Maher this offseason. The Cowboys have reportedly worked out multiple kickers before this week, so It would also not be surprising if Maher is replaced before the season is over.

- There was only one thing worse than the Cowboys' offense and that was their defense. As previously mentioned, Jaylon Smith was by far the best player on defense, but everyone else was pretty much a no show on defense. They allowed the Bears to score 31 points and Mitch Trubisky looked like a Pro-Bowl caliber quarterback for the first time this season. To put some perspective on his performance, Trubisky's QBR was 80.6. He is averaging a QBR around 40 this season, meaning he played twice as good as he was expected to against this Cowboys' defense. In addition to their inability to stop Trubisky, the defense as a whole had an exceptionally hard time tackling all night, which lead to the Bears gaining extra yardage and extra opportunities to score. Injuries to Vander Esh and Jeff Heath have derailed this Cowboys' defense, and their matchups between the Rams and the Eagles don't bode well for this struggling defense.

The Ugly

- Costly penalties killed the Cowboys Thursday night. Xavier Woods got called for holding on Allen Robinson on a 3rd and 9. This would have forced the Bears to kick a long field goal on 4th down, but instead the Bears scored shortly thereafter to go up 24-7. Michael Bennet also got called for an avoidable penalty. On 3rd and 2 in Cowboys' territory he jumped off sides which caused the Bears to get an easy first down. This penalty also resulted in a Bears touchdown. In total, the Cowboys had 6 penalties for 52 yards. That can be blamed on bad coaching and a lack of discipline.

- The ugliest part of the game took place on the sidelines. Jason Garrett didn't look liked he cared that he was losing to the Bears. He looked as though as if he knew this would be his last season with the Cowboys, so he is just going through the motions of his job until his inevitable departure comes to fruition. The Players on the sideline didn't seem emotional affected either, but rather in shock. Michael Bennett's face after the bears scored their third touchdown was pure shock. It's clear the Jason Garrett has lost the locker room, and his players respect.

- Let's face it, the Cowboys don't even look like a playoff contending team. If it wasn't for the fact that they play in a bad division, the Cowboys could have been written off after their loss to the Jets. Time and time again they constantly fall under pressure, and when their games become must win games, they fold like a house of cards. Despite all of the talent this roster has, they have continued to underperform and shot themselves in the foot time and time again. This was a must win game, but for a multitude of reasons the Cowboys just can't seem to win the big game when it matters the most. To quote a famous ESPN personality "They are an accident waiting to happen. What can go wrong will go wrong for the Dallas Cowboys."

Even though the Cowboys have lost three games in a row, they are still in first place in their division due the NFC East being a joke, They look to defend their pity title when they square off against the playoff contending Rams next Sunday in what looks to be a lopsided affair. The Rams have bounced bag since their slow start, and look to claim a Wild Card spot as the season comes to a close. It will be a rematch of the 2019 NFC Divisional Playoff Round matchup, but this Cowboys' team is a lot different for last year's team.

Most Popular

SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome

Listen Live

ESPN Houston 97.5 FM
Amen Thompson looks like the real deal. Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images.

Thursday night's one point loss at Memphis aside, what a run the Houston Rockets have been enjoying. Within a two week stretch the Rockets beat the last two NBA Champions (winning on the road in Denver and Boston), and twice beat the Cleveland Cavaliers who have the best record in the league this season and against all other teams are 39-7. Yes, the Nuggets were without Nikola Jokic in their loss to the Rockets but don’t nitpick. Entering February with a 32-15 record exceeds even optimistic preseason hopes. The preseason betting line for the Rockets' season win total was 43, give or take a game. They are on pace to win 55.

In the 2022-23 season the Rockets completed a three-year run as an on-court laughingstock with a 22-60 record. That tied for the second worst record in the NBA, following seasons of 20-62 and 17-55 which each were the worst record in the league. It was an embarrassing stretch for a proud franchise. The Rockets had just three losing seasons total in the 36 seasons prior to their recent three years in the toilet. Following the ‘22-’23 slog, the Rockets’ cross their fingers really hard hope was to win the draft lottery where the unquestioned grand prize was Victor Wembanyama. Alas, the Rockets drew only the fourth pick on lottery night. Wemby” hasn’t disappointed the San Antonio Spurs at all, and in this his second season he stands a strong chance of winning the Defensive Player of the Year Award.Prevailing sentiment had point guard “Scoot” Henderson as the second-best prospect in the ‘23 draft. The Charlotte Hornets took forward Brandon Miller at number two because they already had LaMelo Ball at point guard. The Portland Trail Blazers then took Henderson at three. Would the Rockets have taken him at number two or three? We don’t know with certainty. Other than for laughs they have no reason to admit they'd have selected "Scoot," any more than Nick Caserio would have to admit the Texans’ would have drafted Bryce Young over C.J. Stroud if they had picked first not second in the 2023 NFL draft. What we do know is the Rockets picked Amen Thompson fourth. Amen to that.

Thompson individually best mirrors the Rockets’ rapid rise from mediocre last season (41-41) to legitimate contender. Thompson was the fourth pick in his draft class, after the Rockets took Jabari Smith third the year before, with Jalen Green the second overall pick the year before that. It was Smith’s broken hand in early January that spurred head coach Ime Udoka to insert Thompson into the starting lineup. I’m guessing neither Thompson nor Smith know the story of Wally Pipp (or perhaps Lou Gehrig either), but how can Udoka put Smith back in the starting lineup? The race is on for which in hindsight will be general manager Rafael Stone’s greater move, taking Thompson at four or swinging the post-draft trade that netted 2021 number 16 selection Alperen Sengun. Sengun Thursday night was named an All-Star game reserve for the first time. One can envision Thompson joining Sengun on an All-Star squad as soon as next season. Credit to Jalen Green for some improvement this season, but the idea that he has made a huge leap and should have made the All-Star game is silly. Green has stretches where hot shooting combines with his explosiveness to make him look like a star, but that is not his body of work. Green’s shooting percentages remain below average from the floor overall and from behind the three-point line.

The Rockets are second in the Western Conference while getting essentially nothing from the third pick in last June’s draft, guard Reed Sheppard. He’s just 20 years old and there is no reason for a pure shooter to lose that skill before he can legally buy a beer, so bust talk is way premature. But Sheppard looked like a poor man’s Bryce Drew (that’s not a compliment) in his early season opportunities, overmatched physically with the game way too fast for him.

When you draft in the top four for four consecutive years, you’re supposed to assemble some stout talent. In consecutive drafts the Seattle Supersonics/Oklahoma City Thunder picked Kevin Durant (at number two), Russell Westbrook (at number four), and James Harden (at number three). Success is no given however even with a raft of high lottery picks. The Minnesota Timberwolves in successive drafts selected third, fifth and sixth the same year, fourth, and second. Their “haul” was O.J. Mayo, Ricky Rubio/Jonny Flynn, Wesley Johnson, and Derrick Williams. Yikes.

The current iteration of the Thunder is obviously the best team in the Western Conference, but until OKC breaks through and wins a conference title, it’s not unreasonable to think OKC can be had in a best-of-seven. That the Rockets make the list of teams who wouldn’t require a miracle to topple the Thunder is a phenomenal development.

Still counting down to the start of spring training, but we have taken no offseason from discussing the Astros. Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me for a New Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday, with an additional episode now on Thursday. Click here to catch!


*Looking to get the word out about your business, products, or services? Consider advertising on SportsMap! It's a great way to get in front of Houston sports fans. Click the link below for more information!

https://houston.sportsmap.com/advertise

SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome